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September 2009 Newsletter Volume 3, No 9 As harvest season for oysters and clams begins here along the Grand Strand, the days grow shorter and milder, and the nights grow longer and crisper. Restaurants up and down the coast switch from the more refreshing cool dishes such as shrimp salads and fruit smoothies to heartier fare such as oyster roasts (huge pots of steamed oysters with vegetables and sometimes other meats, plus as many hushpuppies as you can eat). Baskets of fried clams drizzled with lemon make a tasty finger food, too, especially during football season when all eyes are on the game. The fall is also migration season for many people living far to the north who come visit us for several months to avoid the piercing effects of ice and snow. Other advantages of coming here to "over-winter" during the harshest part of the year include packing fewer winter weather items (this allows more room for golf clubs and golf gear), being able to enjoy leisure pursuits in our more temperature environment, and also experiencing fewer of bouts of joint stiffness caused by temperatures below 32. Our shirt-sleeve weather lasts much longer than the summer season, so visitors find that often just a light jacket will suffice until nearly the New Year's holiday, and our fall season along the coast produces a crispness in the air that puts a bounce in the step. In fact, as our growing list of events suggests, many people spend their autumn days out on their bicycles, jogging, or simply strolling. So, join us, won't you! Come take advantage of our delightful fall season here at the beach! We have a comfortable spot waiting for you. Your friends at SeaSide News and Happenings at Seaside Fall Golf at Seaside October, November, and December golf weather remains inviting with warm days and gently cooling nights, leaving just enough crispness in the air for vigorous early morning tee-offs, if you so choose. You have no need to worry about frost delays until mid-November at the earliest, and even then, because of our coastal location near the still-warm ocean, you might not have frost until later in the month. Making arrangements for golf tee times with accommodations could not be easier with our expert golf agents who are trained to help you find the golf package best suited to your needs. This golf season 2009 you will find particularly attractive discounts, and with other discounts around the Grand Strand in everything from holiday shopping to evening entertainment such as at The Alabama Theatre and Legends in Concert, you will find the entire package to be worthwhile, indeed. Especially if you have not even taken a summer vacation yet, perhaps waiting to see how the global economy affects you, we hope that you will consider how much you deserve some time off, perhaps in a restful golf vacation this fall at the beach. We have many, many premier courses for you to consider, in particular in the south part of the Grand Strand the Burroughs and Chapin package and towards the north end of the Strand, the "Cats" package at the exclusive Ocean Ridge Plantation! Fending Off the Cold and Flu Season Healthcare workers have begun sending out signals that this 2009-2010 year will have higher than normal numbers of cold and flu sufferers. We at Seaside see many people converge here for their fun and sun, so we want to help spread the word that precautions such as frequent hand-washing, even in private places such as our homes and vacation condos, should be a routine practice, especially this year. Next month at Myrtle Beach Seaside Resorts one of our sister properties is holding a flu clinic, but even before then, we are looking for ways to minimize our chances to acquire a flu virus. The World Health Organization offers some simple guidelines to minimize our experiences with upper respiratory problems this year: Wash hands often Avoid close contact. Avoid spreading germs. Keep hands away from your eyes, nose, and mouth. If you are sneezing and coughing, cover your mouth and nose Practice good health habits (eat beneficial foods, get enough sleep, manage stress, etc.) Let's all get through this flu season without suffering any of its effects. Featured Recipe - "Killer" Cranberry Sauce OK, we think of cranberry sauce with Thanksgiving, but it has other uses. Besides, it's not too early to start thinking of Thanksgiving, anyway. This recipe can be used on everything from sandwiches to entrees. Try a bit with your favorite meat dish and of course with your formal Thanksgiving meal. Not only are cranberries high in vitamin C to help to strengthen our immune systems, they also taste good. Why not make the recipe and freeze some of it for your November feast (if you are staying home instead of coming here to Seaside for this holiday), or put some in decorative containers to give as gifts. Ingredients: 1-1/2 C sugar 1 navel orange 1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger 4 cups of whole freshly washed cranberries 1/2 cup (2 ounces) toasted pecans Directions: Grate the orange peel and add to a pot with the sugar and ginger. Add the juice from the orange into the pot and simmer over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved. Add cranberries and cook until their skin pops - about 5 minutes. Add pecans and cool the sauce. Click here for a printable version of recipe Local Events Calendar - September, 2009 Autumn event choices are even more numerous than what you see here. Click here to view more calendar events. You can book reservation conveniently online at www.SeasideMB.com and join in on the fun of your favorite event(s). 10/1-3. Fall Bike Rally. The weather is still warm and the hospitality is, too! Come stay with us just moments away from the all the excitement, whether you participate in the motorcycle rally or just hang out at the local fun places. Enjoy our spacious accommodations near the water and count on our friendly service and much more! Call 800.968.8986 for more information, and ask about specials! 10/4. Beach Music Celebration called "Let the Good Times Roll!" Relive classic hits by some of the most popular performers in the Beach Music world (The Tams, Craig Woolard and Billy Scott to name a few). Full symphonic accompaniment to great beach tunes. Long Bay Symphony. More information at 843.448.8379. 10/11 and 12. Shrimp and Jazz Fest in Little River, SC. Held on Columbus Day weekend, this party in beautiful historic Little River is a major attraction in this part of the Grand Strand with non-stop music, family fun for all ages, a shrimp cook-off, arts and crafts vendors, plenty of food, and lots more. Come to the waterfront from 10 AM to 6 PM. 10/17-18. The 29th Annual North Carolina Oyster Festival, held annually in Ocean Isle Beach (just over the NC/SC state line). Whether or not you are a long-standing fan of oysters or not, you will enjoy this fall festival because of its local color and culture, plus its tribute to fall and food and fun. This is great place to get a start on holiday shopping, to unwind while listening to live bands, and to roam the grounds watching all the sights. For information call 800.426.6644. 10/27. Taste of the Town. Each year the Grand Strand area enjoys a special fund-raiser for Come to the Myrtle Beach Convention Center to taste delicacies from some of the Grand Strand's most delightful restaurants. Over 50 top restaurants share their culinary specialties and compete for coveted prizes of being the "best" in various categories. For more information, Myrtle Beach Convention Center 843.448.5930. 10/31. The Annual Endless Summer Festival on Main Street in North Myrtle Beach. For more information, 843.281.2662 or www.nmbevents.com. 10/31. Trick or Treating at Broadway at the Beach, from 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM. Bring your children of all ages to trick or treat at Broadway at the Beach where you'll find much to see and do, plenty of kid-friendly events, and opportunities for shopping and dining. Come to 1325 Celebrity Circle. For more information, 843.444.3200 or go online to www.broadwayatthebeach.com. 10/31. Trick or Treating at Market Common from 6 PM to 8 PM. Each store has clues to find treats. Great for kids of all ages. For more information, go to www.MarketCommon.com or call 843.839.3500. Address of the event is 4017 Deville Street in Myrtle Beach 29577. Check out what's happening on the beach right now with our Web cam   Guest Comments My family of 8 spent 3 nights at Seaside, and we really enjoyed it. Everyone was very nice, and our condo was very nice. We want to stay there next time, only maybe longer. Please let us know of your specials now and next summer. Thank you . Hatton Family Email received as a newsletter response, Hatton family, 08.25.09. The Reservation Hostess was very helpful and provided excellent Customer Service. The rooms were very roomy and very clean. Staff on site were very courteous and helpful. Email on TripAdvisor.com from guest "cats92," from North Carolina, 08.18.09. Nice hotel with nice free breakfast, clean and has daily maid service. Indoor parking lot is small and you have to drive carefully. Or you can park outside across the street. Email on TripAdvisor.com from guest "dxp0105a," 08.13.09. This hotel exceeds expectations. The view from the room is magnificent. The room was very clean and very comfortable. I would certainly stay here again. Email on Hotels.com from unnamed guest, 09.07.09. This hotel was sooooo beautiful! The rooms were huge, the view form the balcony was amazing, the service was outstanding, and the amenities were exceptional. It was a wonderful mini vacation. I would recommend this hotel to anyone! About 10 minutes after we saw the room, we called and booked it for another night through hotels.com. If we tried to book it in the office, it would have cost more, but hotels.com made it very easy to book another night so it was no trouble at all. Everything was wonderful!! Thanks, Seaside, for a beautiful vacation. Email on Hotels.com from unnamed guest, 05.27.09. Fun Facts We refer to a bird's call and a bird's song. Which is which? A bird's call is short and simple with a specific function such as alarm to danger. Usually the bird making the call does so instinctively, not because he learned the sound pattern. A bird's song tends to be longer than a call, more complex. Generally songs are learned and only the male sings, such as during courting and breeding season. The snowy egret is known for a foot-raking behavior, that is, dragging his feet over the water in a fly-over. This motion causes fish to scatter because of his shadow and the motion on the surface of the water. Then, the egret can stab down into his prey while he is still in flight. With this maneuver, he is able to catch the fish and then return to his perch to eat it. Hummingbirds never soar or glide because their wings are not designed for or are strong enough for these motions. They can, however, fly backwards. "Dove" and "pigeon" are common names for the same family of birds. Some people refer to "dove" for the smaller species and "pigeon" for the larger ones, but in actuality both are interchangeable. A young dove/pigeon is a "squab." What we call a "pigeon" is actually a feral Rock Dove, often found in most cities. According to research at the University of Chicago, birds do dream when they sleep: visions of songs, dream rehearsals of singing, and practicing songs to sing them better the next day. No feathers on a Blue Jay are blue because there is no blue pigment in any of the feathers. Yet, the feather do appear blue to our eyes because of tiny transparent particles in the feathers that bounce blue light at the on-looker while screening out other wavelengths of light. There are seven species of pelicans in the world, with White Pelicans and Brown Pelicans as the only two North American species. The Brown Pelican is unique among the seven because it is the only known species that dives head first from the sky into the water for fish. The four largest shore birds on our beaches are the Long-billed Curlew (largest of the group with the longest curved bill), the Marbled Godwit (longest straight bi-colored bill that appears to curve up but actually does not do so), two Marbled Godwits, the Whimbrel (shorter curved bill), and the Willet (the smallest of the four with a straight, gray, dark bill). Most birds have four toes. An ostrich has two, using it more like a hoof as defense. Some birds have bills, others beaks. A bill is used for catching things, such as wading birds catching fish and cardinals and flycatchers catching seeds and insects with their bills. A beak is used for tearing things apart, such as hawks and owls catching with their talons and then tearing at what they have caught by using their beaks.